The New Stuff

Facebook tests ‘subscription Groups’ that charge for exclusive content
Facebook has begun testing subscription-based Groups among a select array of users, which now allow Group managers to charge monthly for exclusive content, and which will open up new possibilities to digital marketers when rolled out to all users. TechCrunch

Google Search Console URL Inspector Tool Is Still Rolling Out
Google has added several features to its beta Search Console that offer greater insight into indexed URLs, including new more detailed crawl, index, and page-serving information, the Internet giant announced this week. SEO Roundtable

Report: Employee advocacy trumps influencer marketing
Employee advocacy has gotten recommendations that are seen as more trustworthy than those of traditional influencers, while the accurate measurement of return-on-investment (ROI) remains a top challenge for social media marketers, according to interesting recent Sprout Social report data. PR Daily

Advertisers will soon have AdWords tools to test & measure creative elements of YouTube video ads
YouTube advertisers will gain a slew of new testing and measurement utilities in Google AdWords (now known simply as Google Ads), when Google rolls out its Video Experiments, Video Creative Analytics, YouTube Director Mix, and Video Ad Sequencing tools, all currently in beta testing but now being made available to an expanded group of digital marketers. Marketing Land

Report: Marketing leaders aren’t keeping up with the speed of data
Leveraging customer data and employee empowerment are sizable challenges among marketing leaders, according to new survey data from Forbes Insights and Treasure Data, with just one in four companies reporting that they can adequately leverage their available data. MarTech Today

Facebook opens up Watch to creators & adds video features to take on YouTube
With new additions to Facebook Watch, the world’s biggest social media service goes head-to-head with YouTube, expanding video options to include Facebook Pages, and the ability to monetize videos with an updated Ad Breaks component. Marketing Land

Performance Card In Google My Business
Google has given companies with a My Business account new ways to measure engagement and reach, with its recently-released Performance Cards for Google Maps feature — a move that offers digital marketers expanded analytics capabilities. Search Engine Roundtable

Facebook now running autoplay video ads in Messenger
Facebook has added auto-play inbox video ads to Messenger, which can be hidden but not entirely turned off, offering digital marketers a greater reach potential, the company announced recently. AdAge

Snapchat experiments with sharing ad revenue with creators
Snapchat’s new ad revenue-sharing program has given Snap digital creators a potential monetary boost similar to the benefits offered by YouTube, the platform announced recently. DigiDay

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE:

A lighthearted look at social media policy, by Marketoonist Tom Fishburne — Marketoonist

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